My Roommate Peeta
by thebakery
Summary: Katniss finds herself in a dilemma when she finds out that her new roommate isn't who she expected. But is she really complaining?
1. Best & Worst Day Ever

Katniss sighed as she searched through the newpaper for the third time that afternoon. _At this rate, I might as well just move back into the dormitory, _she thought. Finding a place to rent that fit within her meager budget was turning out to be more of a nightmare than she had expected.

Glancing at her watch, Katniss realized that her Intro to Painting class started in less than 3 minutes and that Annie's apartment was 10 minutes from campus. _Hell, it's only been a week and I'm already showing up late to class._

Annie was the first woman who didn't immediately fall for Katniss' high school friend Finnick's charm; that in and of itself merited Katniss's respect and won her friendship when they met during their freshman year of college. This year, Annie was kind enough to let Katniss stay at her apartment until she found a place to rent for the school year.

Katniss quickly changed into the first pair of t-shirt and jeans she could find, braided her hair, and grabbed her backpack and bike helmet.

By the time she made it to class she was completely out of breath from pedaling as fast as she could and running up the stairs to the art studio. She pushed open the door and was greeted by the stares of her twenty-or-so classmates, who were in the middle of taking notes. Her art professor, Dr. Trinket, who stood at the far end of the room, gave Katniss a disapproving look. Dr. Trinket was, as usual, dressed in an elaborate outfit comprised of a blue satin dress with an enormous flower broche attached to her left shoulder, along with a hair piece made out of what Katniss hoped were plastic monarch butterflies.

"Where are your manners, young lady?" Dr. Trinket scolded. "Please take a seat right this minute!" She pointed to an empty seat in the front row.

Katniss felt her cheeks heat up. She quickly made her way to her seat and took out her notebook as Dr. Trinket resumed giving her lecture on painting textures and varying light qualities. Katniss had fought to stay awake during the first two lectures, and it didn't look like today was going to be any different - the only reason she was taking this class was to fulfill her arts requirement for her environmental engineering degree. She drowsily stared at the student-made paintings on the wall next to Dr. Trinket's powerpoint presentation.

It was then that she noticed there was someone sitting behind Dr. Trinket's desk, about 10 feet away from her own seat - someone who was certainly not old enough to be a professor, nor was he a student because he clearly wasn't part of the class. Her eyes hungrily drank in his handsome features. His broad shoulders and well-defined muscles were clearly visible through his blue shirt, which brought out his deep blue eyes and contrasted with his wavy blonde hair. His face was contorted with concentration, as he flipped through several stacks of paper scattered all over Dr. Trinket's desk, seemingly searching for an elusive grade sheet or homework assignment. When he finally found the sheet of paper he had been searching for, he scanned it, pressing the eraser of his pencil to his lower lip. Never before had Katniss wanted to be a pencil so badly.

Suddenly he froze, as if he felt Katniss' stare. He slowly turned his head to look at her. For a split second, his eyes widened and he held a look of surprise as his gaze roamed over her. Then his face broke out into a wide grin. Katniss felt a blush rising to her cheeks. She scowled at him to cover up her embarrassment and turned away from him to face Dr. Trinket, who was still giving her lecture. She heard him chuckle softly, which made her scowl even more.

She attempted to ignore him for the rest of class by forcing herself to pay attention to Dr. Trinket, but a few minutes later she felt a painful jab in the left side of her ribs.

"Hey," she heard someone whisper, rather loudly. Katniss turned her head and saw a girl with a short black bob and stunning green eyes smirking at her. Katniss frowned and turned back to her notes.

"Brainless!" the girl whispered, louder this time.

"What's your problem?" Katniss asked her, annoyed.

"Nothing, brainless. I just thought I'd let you know that your shirt is inside out."

Katniss looked down at her shirt, and lo and behold, her shirt _was_ inside out. The backwards lettering of the "Panem University" logo was visible through the front. She groaned mentally as she realized why the blonde man had been smiling - no, laughing at her. _This day can't get any worse_, she thought.

When class finally ended, she was in the middle of gathering her notebook and pencils when out of the corner of her eye, she saw that someone had walked up to her. She looked up and her gaze was met by the impossibly blue eyes of the man who had been sitting in Dr. Trinket's desk. Up close, to Katniss' dismay, he was as attractive as he was from afar, if not more so. She noticed his long lashes and the way his smile lit up his eyes. _He probably thinks he can get any girl he wants. _She felt a wave of anger run through her. _How dare he approach her after laughing at her?_

"Hey," he greeted her, still smiling. "My name is Pe-"

"Sorry." She cut him off abruptly, no longer meeting his gaze. "I'm late for my next class." She grabbed her backpack and walked away, seething with anger.

In reality, she only had one class that day, as it was a Friday, the day when she had the least classes. It was already 7:00 pm. Other students her age were probably getting ready to go out and party, but Katniss preferred to keep to herself. She typically spent her Friday nights tucked into a comfy corner of the sofa, surrounded by blankets, watching her favorite movies - and she wasn't about to let a bad day stop her from doing that.

At about 11:30, she was halfway into 500 Days of Summer, her third movie, when she heard the front door open and close.

"Heyyyy Kat. What m-movie are you w-watching?" Annie asked from the doorway, her voice slurred and her normally flawless hair and clothes disheveled.

Katniss grinned. "Someone looks like they had fun tonight."

"I've n-never heard of t-that movie b-before," Annie slurred.

Laughing, Katniss stood up. "Someone also looks like they need to get some rest." She led a very drunk Annie toward her bed. When she turned around to put a blanket over her, Annie was already asleep.

* * *

The next morning, Katniss attempted to make waffles, which turned out to be a complete disaster. As she gingerly tried to remove the remains of the burnt waffle that were stuck to Annie's waffle maker, she heard Annie walk into the kitchen.

"I thought I smelled something burning. You should really stop trying to cook. I mean, if the number of kitchen appliances you've destroyed isn't enough evidence, then I don't know what is."

"Hey, I haven't destroyed _that_ many appliances..."

"Fin's blender. Fin's coffee maker. My electric griddle. And now, my waffle maker."

Laughing, Katniss replied, "Okay, okay! So I'm terrible at cooking, and I'm slowly destroying all of my friends' kitchens. What do you want me to do, move in with someone else?"

"Actually, yes." Katniss raised her eyebrows. "Last night, before we went back to Finnick's place and-" Katniss groaned, giving her a look that said, _I don't want to know._ Annie laughed and continued, "You know. Before that, I was telling Fin about how you're looking for a place to move into, and he told me he knows someone who lives in a two bedroom apartment 5 minutes from campus and was looking for someone to rent the spare bedroom for $200 a month. I told him you were interested and he gave me the apartment owner's info." She fished a small piece of paper out of her purse and handed it to me. _$200 a month? Unreal!_

"Peeta Mellark," Katniss read aloud. _Weird name, _she thought. She wasn't sure, but she thought there was a female character named Peeta in a foreign film she had seen recently. An email address was scrawled underneath the name. "I'll shoot them an email," she told Annie. "Thank you, and thank Finnick for me, this is a huge help!"

She went back to her room and pulled out her laptop so she could send the email right away. She had no time to waste if she wanted any chance of moving out of Annie's place.

_Dear Peeta Mellark, _she wrote. _My friend Finnick Odair informed me through his girlfriend Annie that you are currently looking for someone to rent the spare bedroom in your apartment for $200 per month. I would like to express my interest in this offer- that is, if it is still standing. I am 20 years old and currently a third year student at Panem University- I'm working toward attaining a degree in Environmental Engineering. That being said, I spend a lot of my time studying and definitely will not disturb you at all when I am in the apartment. Please let me know as soon as possible if you're interested and if so, when I can move in. -Katniss Everdeen_

About an hour later, Katniss was in the middle of doing her calc homework when she heard a _bing _come from her laptop, telling her that she had received a new email. She eagerly opened her email inbox and saw that Peeta had replied.

_Katniss - Thanks for the email. Yes, the offer is still standing and you're welcome to move in whenever you like. My address is 4583 NW District Rd. Just let me know when you plan on moving in, and we'll sort out the rent details later. - Peeta Mellark_

Katniss almost screamed in excitement. _Would it be too soon to move in tomorrow? _she wondered. She sent him an email, asking him just that. He replied 5 minutes later: _No, tomorrow sounds great. Can't want to meet my new roommate._


	2. A Surprise

**Hey there, everyone :) I just wanted to let you all know that I don't usually update this fast, but I wrote out the first few pages of this story all at once and then split them up into separate chapters. I didn't want to keep you guys waiting so I'm posting Chapters 2 and 3 today. Please let me know what you think of the story; comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated!**

* * *

Katniss slid the last cardboard box into her car and wiped off the sheen of sweat on her forehead. Then she shut the door and ran back up to Annie's apartment to let her know that she was leaving.

"Are you sure you don't need help moving into the apartment?" Annie asked her, a concerned look on her face.

"No, thanks, I'll be fine. Thanks so much for everything. You're the best friend I could possibly ask for." She reached out and gave Annie a hug. "Once I'm settled in, I'll buy you a new waffle maker," she promised. She released Annie and walked outside to her car.

"Don't forget about my electric griddle!" Annie shouted from the doorway.

Laughing, Katniss replied, "I won't!" She gave Annie a final wave and drove off.

About 15 minutes later, she pulled into the parking lot of Peeta's apartment complex. The complex was a large set of brown buildings surrounded by an exotic, out-of-place selection of tropical plants. A large sign read "Abernathy Apartments." Neighboring the apartment complex was a grocery store and an Indian restaurant named "Chennai Flavors".

Suddenly Katniss realized that she didn't know which apartment was Peeta's. She scolded herself mentally for not asking him in her email, or even asking for a phone number. _Guess I'll just have to ask someone at the front desk._

She parked her car near the front office and walked in. There was no one there, so she rang the bell sitting on the desk. She waited for a minute, and no one came. She rang it again, and still no one showed up.

"Hello?" she called out, loudly. "Is anyone here?"

"I'm coming. Calm yourself, sweetheart," said a gruff voice through the door behind the desk. A pair of eyes peered through the blinds in the window of the door, and then Katniss heard the doorknob turn. She was greeted by the sight of a unkempt, bedraggled-looking man in his 40s or 50s with a silver flask in his left hand. He reached out and gave Katniss a handshake with his right hand.

"The name's Haymitch Abernathy. Owner and head manager of Abernathy Apartments. What can I do for you?" he asked her, looking her up and down. Katniss tried to discreetly wipe her hand on the back of her jeans.

"Um, hi there," she said hesitantly. "I'm looking for someone named Peeta Mellark- I'm supposed to m-"

"Room 208." He grinned. "I'm impressed. Peeta never invites girls back to his place."

"Oh, I'm not-" Katniss started, blushing.

"Sorry, sweetheart. No time to waste," he said, already stepping back through the door from which he came.

"Wait!" Katniss blurted out. "Mr. Abernathy! Thanks for your help."

"No problem, sweetheart. And call me Haymitch." He gave her a wink and slammed the door shut.

Katniss navigated her away around the apartment complex and found Peeta's apartment on the third floor. From what Katniss could tell, it was the only apartment that had a decent view. Instead of overlooking the Indian restaurant or the grocery store, Peeta's apartment faced toward downtown Capitol. In fact, from the balcony in front of Peeta's front door, Katniss could make out the Capitol building, a white dome framed by bright green trees.

Eager to meet her new roommate, Katniss knocked on the door twice. She heard someone moving around in the apartment. "Sorry, just a minute!" a muffled voice called out. About a minute later, Katniss heard the clicking noise of the door being unlocked.

The door opened and she saw a familar face. It was... the blonde man from her art class?! Her mouth fell open. Compared to when she first saw him, today he was considerably underdressed, but somehow it made him look even more attractive. His blonde hair fell in short, messy waves. He wore baggy gray sweatpants and a white undershirt that outlined his defined, but toned muscles. She cursed herself internally for inadvertently giving him the once-over.

"You're... You're Peeta Mellark? You were in Dr. Trinket's room the other day, right?" she asked, hesitantly.

Peeta looked equally surprised. He ran his hands through his hair nervously, making it even more messy than before. "Ah.. yes. I'm her TA. And I suppose that you're Katniss Everdeen?"

Katniss scowled. "You never mentioned in your emails that you were, ah.. _male_," she said with an accusatory tone, her eyes narrowed.

"Well, to be fair, you never said you were female." Peeta shrugged.

"My name is Katniss. Kat. Niss," she emphasized. "What kind of a name is Peeta?"

"I could say the same thing about your name, Katniss," he said quietly, his blue eyes staring at her.

They stared at each other for a few seconds, dumbfounded.

"Listen, Katniss. Even though you're not who I was expecting, it sounded like you really needed a place to move into, even if it's temporary. If you're not too uncomfortable, you're still welcome to stay here, at least until you find another place." Peeta ran his hands through his hair again.

"Oh, no, I shouldn't," Katniss replied, trying not to stare at his toned arms. "You were looking for someone to rent for the whole year, right? I can find some other place else to rent."

"No, I insist. If you're okay with me being... male, that is."

_It took me a whole month just to find this place, _she told herself. _Plus, I can't just move back into Annie's place. She was kind enough to let me stay there for a few weeks. I can't impose on her anymore... Besides, you spend so much time locked up in your room that you'll hardly ever see him around the apartment, anyway._

"Alright," she told him with a sigh. "I'll do it."

He smiled and stepped back, motioning for her to come inside. "Well then, come on in!"

She stepped inside and was immediately embraced by the delicious aroma of warm bread. She breathed in deeply.

"Sorry, I was just baking some cheese buns," he said sheepishly, noticing her breathing in the scent.

Peeta's apartment was, in one word, cozy. It was just messy enough that it felt homely and familiar, but not unclean. The main door led into the living room, where a comfy-looking sofa faced a 48" TV. The TV sat on top of an old wooden cabinet that was filled with hundreds of DVDs. The view from the window was just as majestic as Katniss had imagined, with not just the capitol building but also the mountains of panem valley visible in the background. An easel stood next to the window, but it was covered in a white sheet. Katniss wondered if a painting of the lovely view was hidden underneath, but she didn't dare to ask.

Peeta then showed her the kitchen, which overlooked the living room. While the rest of his apartment was the slightest bit messy, in the kitchen not a single object was out of place, nor was there a speck of dirt to be seen. Shiny pots and pans hung above the stove from a hanging rack, and bowls and plates were stacked neatly in the cabinets. Peeta peered into the oven, then rummaged around in a nearby drawer and put on an oven mitt. He then pulled a tray out of the oven and put it on the stove. On the tray were what looked like warm, golden-brown bread rolls. Her mouth watered.

Noticing Katniss' curious stare, Peeta explained, "They're cheese buns. My dad's famous recipe. They're a bit hot at the moment, but we can have some after I show you the rest of the apartment." He saw her disappointed look and laughed. "Don't worry, my apartment is pretty small. It won't take that long."

As they made their way to Katniss' new room, she asked him, "So do you bake often?"

"Yeah, my family actually runs a bakery back home. When I was younger I used to work there."

Her mouth watered at the thought of breads, pies, cookies, and cakes. When she was younger, she and her younger sister Prim would walk home from school. Every day, Prim would beg her to walk through town so she could gaze at the beautifully decorated cakes and pastries that lined the windows of the town bakery. But she never dared to enter, as she knew they wouldn't be able to afford even the smallest cookie. But that was before Katniss' hard work in school paid off and she won a full ride scholarship to Panem University, along with a very generous monthly stipend, nearly all of which she sent back home to her mother and Prim. The scholarship was awarded to only 2 students in the entire country per year, and those students were thereafter known as Victors.

They entered Katniss' room. The walls were painted jade green and the twin bed was pushed toward the wall next to the window. Though the view wasn't as nice as the one in the living room, it was nothing to scoff at. Other than the bed, the only other furniture in the room was a nightstand, a desk, and a chair.

"I know it's not much, but I moved some furniture in here just in case you didn't have any with you," Peeta told her, nervously.

"I actually don't have any furniture of my own yet. Thanks, Peeta." She smiled at him, gratefully. She had planned on sleeping either on the couch or in a sleeping bag for the first few days until she could buy a bed of her own.

Though Katniss hoped there would be two bathrooms, there was only one. A door in Katniss' room led to the bathroom, which was modest in size and had a small shower, sink, and toilet. There was another door on the other side of the bathroom.

"Where does that door lead?" Katniss asked.

"Oh, this bathroom connects to both your bedroom and my bedroom." He opened the other door and showed her.

Peeta's bedroom was painted a soft orange. It reminded her of the orange hues in the sky during sunset. A standard-sized bed was placed in the middle of the room. Like Katniss' room, Peeta's room had minimal furniture: a desk, a chair, a nightstand, and the bed. The view from Peeta's window was almost exactly the same as the view from Katniss' window. In fact, Katniss realized that if the rooms were painted the same color, they would have looked nearly identical.

"Well, that's my apartment. Other than the laundry room - well, more like, laundry closet," he said, chuckling softly. "But I can show you that later. Let's go back to the kitchen and try some of those cheese buns." He held open the door leading from Peeta's room to the hallway and motioned for Katniss to go through.

Katniss bit her lip to keep from grinning out of excitement.


	3. Peeta's Exquisite Cheesebuns

She ducked beneath his arm and made her way back to the kitchen as Peeta followed behind her. Once they were in the kitchen, Peeta told her to sit on one of the stools facing the counter in front of the stove. He grabbed a plate from the dish rack next to the sink and placed it in front of her. He then used a spatula to pick up one of the still-warm cheese buns from the tray on the stove and placed it on her plate.

"Try it. I think you might like it," he said, amusedly watching her drool over the cheesebun.

Katniss took an embarrassingly huge bite out of the cheesebun, discovering that the soft, warm bread gave way to an inside filled with glorious, melted cheese. She closed her eyes and was unable to stop herself from letting out a soft moan. She polished off the rest of the bun in three big bites. "This is so good, Peeta," she told him honestly as she licked her fingers.

When she looked up, she found Peeta staring at her intensely, with a strange look on his face.

"What?" she asked him, suddenly feeling self-conscious.

He shook his head, a blush staining his face. "Ah...nothing. I'm glad you like them. Have as much as you like. But I wouldn't recommend eating more than a couple at a time. I learned that the hard way," he admitted, laughing. "The first time my father made these, I was 7 years old. I ate the entire tray of cheesebuns. After that, I couldn't even look at cheesebuns for a month without feeling sick."

Katniss laughed along with him. "Right now, I feel like I could eat all of these cheesebuns. But I'll take your advice and only eat one more. For now, at least." She grinned and grabbed another cheesebun. "I'm gonna go back to my car and get my stuff, if that's okay with you."

"Of course! I just need to clean up a bit but I'll be out in a minute to help you."

By the time Katniss was out the door she had already wolfed down the cheesebun. _I could get used to this, _she thought.

She was in the middle of pulling a large suitcase out of the back trunk of her car when Peeta jogged up behind her.

"Here, let me get that," he said. Katniss moved aside and he lifted the suitcase out of the trunk almost effortlessly. For what seemed like the 20th time that day, Katniss tried not to stare at the the way the muscles in his arms contracted as he lifted the suitcase.

In the end, Peeta ended up carrying most of Katniss' luggage up to his apartment. When they finally got everything into her room, she thanked him and informed him that she was going to take a shower. He told her that he was making dinner and that it would be ready when she was done.

When she got out of the shower, she wrapped a towel around herself and opened the door to her bedroom to find a set of clean clothes. However, she realized too late that she had opened the wrong door. Peeta stood behind an easel with a paint palette in his left hand and a brush in his right hand, completely frozen, staring at her. Her face heated up as she mumbled an apology and quickly ran back into the bathroom and slammed the door shut. She pressed her hands to her face, completely mortified. _This is _exactly_ why I shouldn't have moved in with a guy._

She put her clothes on as slowly as possible in order to avoid having to see Peeta at dinner. _Maybe if I wait long enough, he'll eat by himself and then go back to his room, _she hoped.

However, to her dismay, she found him sitting at the kitchen counter, a stack of papers in front of him and a pen in his hand. He looked up when he heard her footsteps and gave her a smile.

"Hey there. Dinner's ready," he said, moving his papers aside and getting up to fetch two bowls. "Please, have a seat."

"Hey, uh," Katniss started hesitantly, finding herself blushing again. "Sorry about what...happened earlier. I wasn't sure which door led to my room and I accidentally opened-"

"No worries, Katniss. It happens," he assured her. "If you want, we can even put signs on the doors so we know which one is whose," he joked. "Come on now, let's see if you like my minestrone soup as much as you like my buns." He waggled his eyebrows.

Relieved to hear him say that, she laughed and replied, "We'll see, Peeta. Your buns are quite extraordinary."

Katniss wasn't surprised that the soup was the best she'd ever tasted. To her delight, Peeta brought out the cheesebuns again so that they could eat them with the minestrone. Katniss wondered if she was in heaven, until she realized that she had finished all of her soup. She gave Peeta a sidelong glance and saw that he wasn't even halfway done - probably because he was still working on the stack of papers she saw him with earlier.

Mischieviously, she reached over and stole a spoonful of soup from his bowl.

He saw her out of the corner of his eye and turned to look at her. "I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that you like it?" he asked, watching her continue to eat from his bowl, amusedly. When she didn't reply, he took his own spoon and ate a spoonful from the bowl. "You're lucky I'm a nice guy who'll share his soup with you."

She froze, her spoon inches from her mouth when she saw Peeta eating out of the same bowl. _Don't overthink it, Katniss. He's just a nice, friendly guy. He's not interested in you. _She gave him a friendly grin and they finished the bowl of soup together.

Later that night, Katniss brushed her teeth as she recounted the day's events in her head. Making a mental note to call her younger sister Prim the next morning to tell her about her new apartment and ask her how her SAT exam went, she washed her face and began to dry it with a towel. The towel was still pressed to her face when she heard the door to her left open.

"Oh, hey, sorry. I didn't realize you were in here," said Peeta, who was standing at the doorway, a towel around his neck. _This bathroom situation is a problem...We should really lock these doors when one of us is in here, _she thought.

"No, no, you're fine! I'm already done." Katniss grabbed her toiletry bag and started to walk toward her room, only to turn back toward Peeta. "I just wanted to thank you for letting me stay here while I find another place to rent. It really means a lot. And your cheese buns are amazing. And your minestrone. And I'm sure that whatever else you make for me will be amazing." _Oh my god, did I just imply that he's going to be cooking food for me regularly? You're an idiot, Katniss! Why would he waste his time- _

Her thoughts were interrupted by his reply. "It's my pleasure, really. It's nice to have someone else to cook for, who can give me feedback on my food. And it also means I can cook almost every night without having to eat the leftovers for days afterwards." He smiled. "And I was a little nervous about finding a roommate, I mean we've all heard the horror stories about bad roommates..."

Katniss laughed. "Freshman year, Finnick decided not to choose his own roommate using the roommate profiler, and instead signed up for a random roommate. His roommate turned out to be a hardcore gamer who hardly ever left the room and gamed until 3 or 4 in the morning, every single day."

"Yeah, he told me about that. But I'm glad you heard I was looking for a renter. You seem like a great roommate."

"Oh, you don't know that. It hasn't even been a day," Katniss pointed out.

"I can already tell," he replied, grinning. "Anyway, good night. Let me know if you need anything."

She lay in her bed that night, willing herself to fall asleep. But it took far longer than usual for sleep to overtake her, because her mind was still swarming with thoughts about her roommate, Peeta.


	4. A Misunderstanding

**Well that got written really quickly. Thanks for your follows, favorites, and reviews, everyone! It means a lot to me. I hope you like the chapter - things start to heat up a little between Katniss and Peeta, starting about now. :D Please let me know if you have any suggestions for this story. I'm totally open to new ideas! Also, I could use a beta, because I feel like I've been missing some mistakes in this chapters. Let me know if you're interested!**

* * *

As soon as Katniss awoke, she brushed her teeth and called Prim.

"Katniss!" Prim squealed excitedly. Katniss smiled upon hearing Prim's voice. It had only been a week since they last spoke over the phone, but she already missed her.

"Hey, little duck. How did the SAT go?"

"I'm not sure... I mean, some parts went really well, like the math sections. You know I'm good at math. But the writing prompt was terrible - it was about reality TV shows! You know I barely have time to watch TV, let alone reality TV. But I think the reading section went well, except there was a fill-in-the-blank vocab question where I didn't know the meaning of _any _of the vocab words!"

Katniss laughed, recalling the vocab section from her own SAT. "Yeah, that section always killed my score. But overall, do you think you did okay?"

"I hope so," Prim said, sounding worried.

"Little duck, I _know_ you did well. You're the smartest seventeen-year-old I know."

"Aww, thanks Katniss," Prim replied brightly. "By the way, I heard from Annie that you found an apartment! Oh, I've always wanted to live in an apartment. It sounds so classy, especially one of those fancy apartments upstate," she rambled.

"Yeah, I moved in yesterday. And, about that... Actually, I found someone who needed someone to room with them in their apartment. So, I'm living with them."

"Oh, that sounds so fun! Who is she?"

"Actually... it's not a she."

"...Katniss? Is there something you wanted to tell me?" Prim asked, a hint of betrayal in her voice.

"No, no. We're not dating or anything. Actually, I kind of ended up rooming with him on accident... It's a long story. But anyway, his name is Peeta and he's a really nice guy. He's a senior, majoring in architecture, and he TA's for my art professor." Recalling what Peeta had told her the day she moved in, she added, "Oh, and he works part-time at a local bakery."

"Really nice guy, huh? How old is he? And what does he look like?" Katniss could hear the smirk in Prim's voice.

"Prim, I'm not interested in him that way!" Katniss double checked that the door to her room was closed. "But if you really want to know... He's twenty-two years old. He's a little taller than me, he has blonde hair, and blue eyes."

"Good body?"

"Prim!" Katniss scolded, blushing as she pictured Peeta's defined torso in her mind.

"I'm serious, is he good-looking or not?"

Katniss didn't notice the bathroom door open behind her, as she sat crosslegged on her bed facing away from the door, toward the window.

"I told you, I'm not interested in him that way... But...Um... I don't know. Okay, yeah, I'd say he's good looking."

"On a scale from one to Liam Hemsworth how good looking is he?"

Katniss paused for a second. "...Really fucking good looking. And he has a good body. Really good body, actually. Probably works out every day. But wanna know the best part?"

"He's single and ready to mingle?" Prim teased.

Katniss frowned, realizing that she had no idea whether or not he was single. "I would be surprised if he was single. But he's one of the sweetest guys I've met. And he's a damn good cook."

"Awww, Katniss, he sounds so cute!"

"Yeah, well. Once school gets more intense in a few weeks, I won't have time for that kind of stuff," she said, a little sadly. "Plus, he probably has a girlfriend already, and even if he doesn't, he's definitely not interested in me. Anyway, I should go. I have a chem class at 9."

She and Prim bid their goodbyes and she hung up the phone. She then turned around on her bed and saw Peeta standing in the doorway. His lips were slightly parted and his hand was still gripping the doorknob.

She was stunned into silence. She felt her cheeks aflame with embarrassment when she went over her conversation with Prim in her head, wondering how much he had heard.

Peeta stared at her for a few seconds, the same expression on his face as when he was watching her devour the cheesebun the day before. Then he released his tight grip on the doorknob and walked swiftly toward her until he was inches away from her. She felt warmth radiating from his skin; in turn, molten heat began to pool in her stomach. She realized that she could easily lean forward and press her lips - her body - against his. Then he leaned forward, gently brushed her hair back, and put his lips next to her ear.

"It's a good thing you think I'm a good cook, because I made breakfast for you," he growled softly, his lips brushing the sensitive lobe of her ear with every syllable. Then suddenly his lips were gone and she felt him reach for something behind her. Then his lips were back, his warm breath in her ear making her shiver. "Also." He brushed his lips against the sensitive spot behind her ear. "I'm definitely single."

With that, he stepped back, holding in his hand the coffee mug that Katniss had left on the windowsill. Then he turned around and left the room. Though she was disappointed at the loss of warmth against her ear, she felt heat rising in her cheeks once again as she replayed the still-fresh memory in her mind: his warm breath, his soft lips, the short stubble on his cheek brushing her neck as he spoke. She started to imagine what could have happened if she had turned her head and pressed her mouth against his...

_No, _she told herself. _You can't do this. You don't have time for this. _She took a deep breath and got up to go to the kitchen for breakfast. _Don't think about it. You're just friends. Just friends, _she repeated to herself like a mantra.

She didn't make eye contact with him for the rest of that morning, afraid of what might happen if she did. After breakfast, she decided to leave for class immediately even though she didn't have to be there for half an hour more.

Monday's classes went by more quickly than Katniss had hoped, for she was dreading facing Peeta again after what had happened the night before. _Maybe he'll just brush it off and pretend like it never happened, like he did when I walked into his bedroom wearing nothing but a towel...Yeah, right._

5:00 pm - the end of her last class - arrived way too fast. Normally, she could have hung out with Annie, Finnick, or Gale somewhere on campus, but they were gone on a field trip to North Panem with the rest of the liberal arts majors. Field trips like these - and an overall lack of stress carried by liberal arts students- often made her question why she chose to major in engineering.

Katniss rode ber bike home - unless the weather was bad, she preferred to save gas by biking instead of driving - and reached Peeta's apartment at 5:15. When she made her way inside, she was relieved to find that Peeta was nowhere to be seen. However, he left a note on the kitchen counter that read: _Katniss, I didn't get the chance to tell you this morning, but I have an all-day shift at the bakery today and I won't be home until 7. There's some food in the fridge, so feel free to help yourself to anything you like, but when I get back I'll make something. I can't answer calls at work, but I might be able to sneak in a text if you need anything. -Peeta_

Katniss had just finished her physics homework when the doorbell suddenly rang. Wondering who it could possibly be, she made her way to the front door and looked through the peephole. She grinned when she recognized the visitor and opened the door.

"Gale, what are you doing here? I thought you were on a field trip!" Katniss gave him a brief hug, having to shift her weight onto her tiptoes to be able to wrap her arms around his neck properly.

"Funny story, actually... I got a D on my last essay in Rhetoric and Writing so I wasn't allowed to go," he said, scratching the back of his head sheepishly.

"You don't look too upset."

"That's because I'm not." He grinned. "It was going to be boring as hell. So are you going to invite me inside?"

Katniss punched his shoulder playfully, then opened the door wider so that Gale could come in. "So how'd you get my address?"

"Annie." Gale surveyed the living room and kitchen. "Nice place. Your roommate's into art?" He pointed at the easel next to the large window.

Katniss chose her words carefully, deliberately avoiding the use of pronouns. "Yeah, my roommate is actually the TA for my painting class."

"Really?" Gale looked amused. "I bet she's one of those artsy hipster girls... shaved head, vintage clothes, you know?"

Katniss said nothing.

"So, how 'bout a tour of the rest of the apartment?"

She showed him her bedroom first. He immediately leaped onto her bed, striking a mock-seductive pose with his legs splayed out and his head resting on his right hand.

"Attractive," Katniss joked, laughing.

She then showed him the laundry room (or, laundry closet, as Peeta had described it). Purposefully trying to put off having to show Gale Peeta's room, she spent as long as possible in the laundry room - that is, until Gale grew bored with seeing every brand of detergent they had.

"And that's my roommate's room," Katniss said, quickly pointing at Peeta's door. "Come on, let's go back to the kitchen. You must be hungry."

"Wait a minute. Why aren't you showing me her room? Are there panties lying everywhere or something?"

Katniss snorted with laughter at the idea. "No, she just doesn't like people going into her room," Katniss replied, abandoning her original plan of avoiding pronouns and therefore having no choice but to lie about Peeta's gender.

"Stop messing with me, Catnip. Besides, she's not even here." He walked up to Peeta's door, turned the doorknob, and pushed the door open.

"Gale, wait-"

"Wow, what an artsy color. And another eas-" Gale stopped mid-sentence and narrowed his eyes. Katniss followed his gaze and figured out what he was staring at: Peeta's clothes, including cargo shorts, a polo t-shirt, and boxers, were hanging on a rack attached to the bathroom door. _God damn it Peeta, _Katniss thought.

"Catnip, please tell me she's a crossdresser. Or just slept with a guy. Something." He turned around to face her, the anger and suspicion evident in his voice and expression.

"Gale, I swear I was going to tell you, but you didn't give me the cha-"

"Why the hell did you agree to room with him in the first place?! I mean, he could be an axe murderer, a rapist, anything!" he shouted, getting angrier by the second.

"Gale, please calm down. The neighbors will complain. Let's go back to the kitchen and I'll explain everything."

"You better have a REALLY good reason for rooming with this guy," he warned her, fuming.

They sat on the stools in the kitchen and Katniss explained everything, from Annie's message from Finnick to the present, purposefully leaving out certain parts like the walking-into-Peeta's-room-wearing-nothing-but-a-towel incident.

After hearing her out, Gale stared at her for a few seconds, thinking. "Okay, so he seems like a decent guy from what you've said. But that still doesn't convince me that he's trustworthy. How do you know you can trust him?"

"I can tell. And besides, I'm not exactly in a position where I can just move out right now. You know that, Gale."

Gale moved his hands forward a few inches on the counter and covered Katniss' hands with his own. Her first instinct was to draw her hand back, but she could see that Gale was still upset so she left her hand where it was. It felt foreign, but not entirely unpleasant, as his hands were rather warm. "I just want to make sure you're safe, Catnip," he said, leaning closer, rubbing his thumb over the back of her hand. "I care about you, you know. I care about you alo-"

Right at that moment, Peeta burst in through the front door. When he saw Katniss and Gale, his cheery smile immediately faded. Katniss quickly drew her hand away from underneath Gale's and jumped off the kitchen stool.

Gale got up and walked over to Peeta, offering him a handshake. "Hey, man, nice to meet you. My name's Gale."

Peeta completely ignored Gale, not even looking at him once. "Katniss," Peeta said in a low voice, a look of hurt and betrayal on his face. "You never said you were going to have _guests _over."

Katniss felt a lump rising in her throat. "I'm so sorry Peeta... I didn't know if you were okay with me having guests over. I should have asked..."

Peeta's gaze flitted between her and Gale for a few seconds. Then he stalked into his room and slammed the door shut.

"This does _not _sound like the guy you described to me," Gale said to Katniss, frowning. "Looks like an asshole."

"Gale, I promise you this is not how he normally acts. I don't know what came over him..." She glanced over at Peeta's closed door. "I think you should go, Gale."

"And leave you with Mr. Asshole over there? Fat chance."

"Trust me, I'll be fine, Gale." She unlocked the front door.

"Fine. But promise you'll call me tomorrow so I know he hasn't murdered you or anything."

"I promise. Bye, Gale." She shut the door and locked it behind him, then went back into the living room and slumped onto the couch, not knowing what to do with herself. _How was I supposed to know not to have guests over?_

Her stomach rumbled, and she realized she hadn't eaten since noon. Then she thought of a way she could make it up to Peeta.


	5. A Failed Attempt Indeed

**Sorry for the late update, all you kind readers... However, this is a bit longer than my previous chapters - I hope that makes up for it! Many thanks to my beta, everlarkcheesebuns, for editing this chapter and making it pretty :)**

* * *

Twenty minutes later, she found herself splattered with tomato sauce, having failed at cooking anything edible. Peeta's kitchen was a mess; one counter was covered in breadcrumbs and misshapen slices of French bread, the stove was splattered with tomato sauce and oregano, and the sink was full of pieces of overcooked pasta. Not to mention the floor, which was splattered with bits of all of the aforementioned foods. Just to top things off, there was now a decent-sized cut in her left index finger due to the unfortunate slip of a knife as a result of her attempt to chop some bell peppers.

With no bandages in sight, Katniss tried to keep blood from spurting out of her finger by wrapping a paper towel around it, which worked for about two minutes. Seeing as she had no other choice, she went to ask Peeta where he kept his medical supplies.

She walked up to his door and nervously knocked twice, not knowing what to expect. After hearing no response, she called out, "Peeta? Are you in there?" She waited for a few seconds. Again, no response. "Um, it's kind of urgent... I may or may not have cut my finger while trying to make pasta."

Suddenly the door swung open and Peeta was there, looking at her with wide, concerned eyes. "Oh my god, are you okay? How bad is it?" He grabbed her hands and gently unwrapped the paper towel from around her bleeding finger, examining the cut. "Holy shit, Katniss. This isn't bad enough that we need to go to the hospital, but it's pretty bad. Here, put some pressure on the cut with your other hand until it stops bleeding. I need to find some bandages."

Two minutes later, he came back with a long strip of gauze and some tape. He led Katniss to the bathroom and rinsed the cut with salt water. She had to bite her lip to keep from yelling out in pain. He then tightly wrapped her finger in gauze and tape so the bleeding would stop.

"There," he said, smiling down at her, still holding her hand. Looking at her cautiously through his lashes, trying to gauge her reaction, he brought her hand near his face and pressed his lips to her finger, right over the bandage. She flinched out of surprise, and he immediately dropped her hand and looked away. "Sorry," he said softly. "It's just, my dad used to do that whenever I had a cut." He smiled to himself, wistfully. After a few seconds of silence, he said, "So you were trying to make pasta, you say? Let's have a look, then."

They made their way to the kitchen. Peeta's eyes immediately widened as he surveyed the mess. Then he doubled over, laughing. "Oh my god... Katniss, you made this whole mess? And you were making... what, frozen ravioli?" he said, breathless from laughter.

Katniss blushed. "Shut up," she replied, unable to hold back a grin.

Peeta had the entire mess cleaned up in about five minutes. Katniss sat perched on one of the countertops, watching him helplessly, since he refused to let her help him. When he finished, he leaned against the counter across from Katniss, elbows resting on the surface of the counter.

"What do you say we skip dinner and have dessert instead?" he asked, with a glint in his eye. Katniss nodded furiously, her mouth already salivating at the thought of the dessert.

Peeta set the oven to 400 degrees and then set a large bowl in Katniss' lap. He began rummaging around in the kitchen for ingredients. Every now and then, he would put an ingredient in the bowl and then go back on a search to find the next one. Soon enough, the bowl was full of delicious, aromatic ingredients. Katniss couldn't identify most of the ingredients, but she caught a whiff of cinnamon and chocolate. _And was that pumpkin?_

Peeta handed her a plastic stirring spatula and told her to mix the contents of the bowl together while he prepared a baking pan. Once the mixture was creamy and smooth, Katniss couldn't resist dipping a finger into the chocolatey brown batter and trying some. It was, unsurprisingly, delicious. Katniss let out a soft moan - she really needed to stop doing that around Peeta - and dipped her finger back into the bowl, eager to try some more. "Damn, this is good," she said aloud.

Peeta, upon hearing Katniss, looked up from the pan he was greasing with butter just as she was licking the remaining batter off her finger. "Hey, if you eat all the batter we won't have any left for our...dessert," he said, staring at her. His face held a strange expression: his eyes were a deeper blue than usual, and his pupils were dilated. He looks... hungry, Katniss decided.

"Do you want some, too?" she asked him, holding up the bowl as an offer. His gaze broke away from her eyes only to stare at her lips.

He set the pan down onto the counter and walked up to the counter where she was sitting, as if in a trance, until he was inches away from her. Then he brought his hand up to her face and brushed her lower lip with his thumb, wiping away a bit of batter. The sensation of his rough, calloused thumb brushing over her lip sent shivers down her spine. Then he brought his thumb up to his own mouth and sucked on it, gently, his eyes still on Katniss, who was intently watching his every movement.

He slowly leaned in, tilting his mouth towards hers. He smelled like brown sugar and cinnamon, reminding her of the delicious smell surrounding the bakery back at home. When their lips were less than an inch apart, he froze. Katniss could feel his warmth breath on her lips, making her impatient. Just before she leaned so their lips could finally meet, he drew back. Suddenly his face held a different set of emotions - a mixture of anger, hurt, and betrayal - the same expression on his face as when he walked into the apartment and saw Katniss and Gale in the kitchen. Before he could walk away, Katniss grabbed his forearm.

"Wait, Peeta. What happened, why did you..." _Not kiss me_, she finished in her head, blushing. "Are you still upset about Gale?" she asked him, worriedly.

He looked up at her, a stony expression on his face. "What do you think?"

"Peeta, I'm really sorry about that. I should have told you I was having a guest over. I didn't know-"

"Katniss, you can have guests over whenever you want. This isn't about that." He looked away again, his face gradually turning more pink by the second.

"Then what is it about?" she asked him, confused.

"I don't know, Katniss!" he snapped. "All I know is that I walked into the apartment and you were practically making out with some guy in our kitchen!"

"I think that's a bit of an exaggeration, Peeta," she replied, puzzled as to why he was so angry. "In fact, you want to know what we were doing in the kitchen? Gale, who by the way is a childhood friend, was angry with me because I didn't tell him that I was sharing an apartment with a guy. So I had to convince him to not drag me out of there and kick your ass."

Peeta was silent for a few seconds, thinking. "If he's just a friend, then why were you holding hands?"

Katniss threw her hands up in frustration. "I don't know, it just happened!" Seeing the hurt in Peeta's expression, she asked him gently, "Peeta, what's wrong? Why are you suddenly so upset?"

"I'm upset because I want what I can't have," he sighed.

"I'm sure that's not true. What exactly is it that you want?"

He gazed down at her, his eyes a stormy blue. "Haven't I made it obvious?" he asked her in a low voice.

Katniss said nothing, holding her breath as he brought his lips next to her ear. "I want you."

_Yes, yes, yes_, her heart cried.

He caressed her cheek, pressing his lips to a spot behind her ear that he had quickly learned would make her shiver. She tilted her head, giving him more access as he planted kisses down her neck.

_Wait, what are you doing? Remember why you're here._

"Peeta," she gasped, breathless, pushing him away. "Do we really have time for this? I mean, between your work and your architectural thesis and TA schedule and my classes…And my scholarship maintenance requirements…" She felt her resolve weaken as he leaned in again and resumed his attack on her neck, his hands skimming her waist just under the hem of her t-shirt.

"I heard what you said this morning on the phone," he growled between kisses. "Tell me you're not interested in me." He nipped her earlobe. "Tell me you don't want me." He dragged his tongue over the hollow of her throat. "Tell me you don't want to kiss me right now." He pulled back a few inches, gazing at her lips hungrily.

In that moment, the battle between Katniss' heart and mind came to an end. She made up her mind.

She put her hands on his chest and pushed him away. "No, I don't want you," she told him, forcing herself to look into his eyes. The look of intensity he displayed was enough to instantly cause a lump to rise in her throat.

"Really?" he asked her, looking hurt and confused.

"Yes, Peeta." She was unable to meet his gaze any longer. "I've made up my mind. I think we both need to keep our priorities straight." She stared at the ground until she couldn't take his silence anymore and looked up.

His eyes, which just a few minutes ago were deep blue oceans, were now shallow pools. He clenched his jaw and stepped back. "Fine then. I'll see you tomorrow."

She watched him storm back into his room, biting her lip to keep herself from calling him back and taking it all back.

* * *

The next morning, the sunshine streaming through Katniss' window woke her with a start. Although sunshine usually put her in a good mood, today it served as a glaring reminder that it was Tuesday and that she had art class today at four o'clock.

Unable to block out much of the sunlight with the cheap, plastic blinds installed in her room, she burrowed her head under her pillow and tried to get some sleep, as she had barely gotten any during the previous night. Without success, she reluctantly rolled out of her bed ten minutes later and quickly brushed her teeth and took a shower, this time making sure that both doors were locked.

She successfully avoided any contact with Peeta that morning by doing homework in her room until Peeta left for work. Unlike yesterday, he didn't bother to call her into the kitchen for breakfast. As she walked into the kitchen after he had left, she was surprised to find a plate of French toast sitting on the counter. She wolfed it down eagerly, ignoring the little voice in the back of her mind that told her that most guys wouldn't continue to cook for the girl they were just rejected by.

She remembered that she still needed to call Gale and tell him that she was still alive and well. Well, for the most part.

By 3:30 that afternoon, she was already exhausted due to lack of sleep. She had been unable to take proper notes in Engineering Physics because her eyelids kept drooping and her hands started shaking after ten minutes. _Get it together_, she told herself, drinking her third coffee in a café two blocks away from the art studio.

She sipped her coffee until 3:50 and then made her way to class, not wanting to draw more attention to herself by being late again. She needed to start paying attention in class because, based on the first two tests, she was starting to doubt whether or not she could even pass the class. The thing is, Environmental Engineering majors were required to take one semester of art, which most students fulfilled by taking Intro to Art for Non-Art Majors. However, Katniss was unable to fit that class into her schedule, so she had no choice but to take Intro to Painting, an entry-level class for art majors. She should have listened when her advisor warned her about taking regular art courses, especially since students on those classes were graded not just on exams but also on their art; this made a normally easy class a struggle for Katniss, as her painting skills were almost nonexistent.

Despite making it to class five minutes early, Katniss was still the last student to arrive. Once again, the only empty seat was the one in the front row, next to the smirking brunette girl and a few feet away from Peeta. Dr. Trinket announced that today would be their first studio day, meaning that they would begin using paints. To Katniss' further dismay, Dr. Trinket then projected a list of assigned partners onto the screen on the front wall. She scanned the list for her name, then found her partner's name.

"Johanna?" she called out hesitantly, looking around the room to see if anyone would answer.

"Right here, brainless," said the girl next to her, her signature smirk still on her face.

"Students, students, may I please have your attention," Dr. Trinket called out once everyone had found their partners. "First of all, these partner assignments will last for the entire semester, so I would recommend that you get to know your partner. Now for the exciting part: Today, you will be receiving your very first project!" she announced excitedly. Half the class groaned. Unfazed, Dr. Trinket handed Peeta a stack of papers to distribute and clapped her hands three times. "Why are you all still seated? Come on now, get your painting supplies!"

Katniss turned to Johanna. "I'll get the paint and paintbrushes and you get the paper?"

"Sure."

Katniss grabbed the supplies from the back of the room and made her way back to her desk right as Peeta got to the front row with only a few sheets left in his hand. Katniss sat down and busied herself with her paintbrushes, scraping bits of dried paint off the wooden ends as Peeta made his way across the row. When he finally got to her and Johanna's desk, she looked up and opened her mouth to say hi, but his pained expression and lack of eye contact instantly made her change her mind.

Just when she finished reading the assignment, Johanna finally got back with the painting pad. "So what's the project, brainless?"

"We have to make a four-by-four-foot color wheel," Katniss groaned in reply. "And it's due by the end of next week."

"What in the hell is that?"

"According to this, it's a 2-D wheel made up of all of the primary, secondary, and tertiary colors. Don't ask me what secondary and tertiary colors are, because I don't know either."

"Wait, I know what those are. We learned about those in design class. This won't be that bad."

"Yeah, but wait until you hear this: All projects will be graded on ability to blend colors, neatness, and creativity," she read aloud. "Creativity!" she scoffed. "How do you even grade creativity?"

"I don't really know, but I've learned over the past two years that creativity in college art classes means whatever the professor wants." They both looked over at Dr. Trinket, who was dressed in a ruffled lavender chiffon dress with a large bow around her neck and a small top hat pinned to her short but voluminous blonde hair. "So, I'm guessing anything wild and outrageous will do," Johanna continued.

They started by planning out their colors. Utilizing her engineering skills, Katniss carefully measured out the ratios of paint needed to create each color so they would be able to recreate them the next class. They decided they would create and start the actual design during the next class.

Despite her over-the-top sarcasm and annoying habit of using the nickname "brainless", Johanna turned out to be surprisingly pleasant company. She was an interior design major who, like Katniss, claimed she was terrible at painting.

Once class was over, Katniss realized she had nothing to do, and she certainly didn't want to go back to the apartment and have to face Peeta again. She asked Johanna if she wanted to get dinner at a local diner, and Johanna replied that she was starved.

Ten minutes later, they were at the diner, laughing and complaining about their majors over burgers and fries, when Gale showed up out of nowhere.

"Catnip!" he exclaimed. She was so startled initially that she nearly dropped her ketchup-covered fry in her lap.

"Hey Gale, what are you doing here?" She scooted over in her seat.

"I just got back from my Rhetoric and Writing class. Got my D up to a C," he boasted, sitting down next to Katniss.

"Good job. You should be proud of yourself," Katniss laughed, only half-joking. "Oh, I'm so sorry guys, I haven't introduced you two. Gale, this is Jo. Jo, this is Gale."

Gale looked over at Johanna, just then noticing her presence. His eyes widened and roamed over her in a way that Katniss had never seen him do before, not even with her.

Johanna looked equally stunned for a few seconds, then returned to her cocky, smirking demeanor. "Hey, gorgeous." She offered him a handshake.

He stared at her outstretched arm for a few seconds, then reached out and grabbed her hand, yanking her around the edge of the table towards him so that she was sitting on his lap. She gasped.

"Gale, what are you doing?" Katniss sputtered.

Ignoring Katniss, Gale put a finger under Johanna's chin and turned her head toward him. "Let me buy you a drink."

Johanna gave him a smirk. "What makes you think I'd let you buy me a drink?"

"You're still in my lap."

"And he's smart, too," Johanna teased, tracing his jawline with a finger.

"Guys, what the hell? We're in a diner!" Katniss exclaimed, astonished at her friends' behavior.

"Sorry, Catnip, but I'm kidnapping your friend for tonight. Here's some money for the bill. I'll see you later." Tearing his eyes away from Johanna only to pull out a $20 bill and slap it on the table, he lifted her up bridal-style and carried her out of the diner.

_Well, at least I'm not third-wheeling anymore_, Katniss grumbled to herself. After paying for the meal, she meandered over to her bike, dreading the fact that she would inevitably have to face Peeta when she got home.

To her surprise, however, when she got home, Peeta seemed to have already eaten dinner and gone off to his bedroom, his door shut. She went into the bathroom and brushed her teeth, distracting herself with thoughts about the next physics exam. Nonetheless, the look of confusion and hurt on Peeta's face when she told him she didn't want him kept resurfacing in her mind.

* * *

That night, Katniss lay awake in her bed, her weight on her side with her head resting on her hand. She stared outside through the window.

"I made the right choice," she whispered to no one. Outside, the moon rose solemnly over the capitol dome.

_If I made the right choice, then why does it feel so wrong?_

She took several deep, slow breaths, willing herself to fall asleep.

* * *

**Who's your favorite couple, Katniss/Peeta or Gale/Johanna? Oh, and yes, I am fully aware of how idiotic Katniss is being by rejecting the most beautiful man on earth... But bear with me here. We'll get there soon. It's a slow burn, guys.**


	6. I Dream of Peeta

**Woo, another chapter within the same week! And it's even longer than the last one! :D I hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it. In this chapter we start seeing a bit of Peeta's point of view and some of his back story... Enjoy! **

**Again, thank you so much to my beta everlarkcheesebuns for proofreading my work, it has helped a lot!**

* * *

PEETA

Peeta knew that most guys wouldn't make breakfast for the girl they were just rejected by. Nevertheless, he still couldn't stop himself from whipping up another serving of the French toast he made for breakfast that morning and leaving it on the kitchen counter for his roommate – his _beautiful_ roommate. His beautiful, intelligent roommate whom he was undeniably attracted to; however, the attraction was apparently only one-way.

He grabbed some raspberries from the fridge and rinsed them in the sink, standing there for a few seconds longer than necessary as he daydreamed about Katniss for the fiftieth time that morning.

He could've sworn there was a spark of mutual attraction between them. He surely wasn't dreaming when he noticed out of the corner of his eye that she was staring at him during class when she thought he wasn't looking. And the way her heartbeat quickened and her breath became shallow when he whispered in her ear – that was definitely not a figment of his imagination. Then why didn't she want to be with him?

As he thought about it more and more, he realized that there was only one explanation. He felt a lump rise in his throat as he remembered the last conversation he had with his ex-girlfriend, Glimmer.

FLASHBACK

_He woke to the sounds of machines whirring and beeping and the scent of latex gloves and disinfectant. He had a mind-numbing headache and his entire body hurt if he tried to move anything. He painfully shifted up the bed so that his elbows were propped up on his pillow, and he could see his whole body. Suddenly he noticed that where there should have been two leg-shaped lumps underneath the thin sheet covering his body, there was only one. His right leg was gone._

_He panicked for a minute, and then he remembered what had happened. The night before, he and his older brother Rye were walking home from the bakery when a drunk driver came out of nowhere and hit them straight-on._

_Rye was dead before they even got him to the hospital, but Peeta only suffered the loss of his right leg._

_Rye was dead._

_Rye, his brother and best friend who had been by his side his entire life, was dead._

_Though he was in disbelief the night before, now the grief hit Peeta hard. Apart from his father, Rye was the only other person in Peeta's family he could trust. His mother was an unhappy woman who had a tendency to both physically and verbally abuse her children, and Peeta usually bore the brunt of her anger, especially due to his interest in "useless" and "girly" activities like drawing and painting. Rye had always tried to stick up for him, but now he was gone._

_Peeta covered his face with his hands to muffle the sound of his sobbing._

_Suddenly he heard the door open and looked up to see his girlfriend Glimmer walk in with a bouquet of flowers. In her other hand was an expensive-looking purse. Peeta discreetly wiped the tears away from his face using the edge of the bed sheet._

_"Hey, Peeta," she said, looking down at him pitifully. "How are you doing? I brought these for you." She held the bouquet out, then thought better of it and instead placed it on a nearby table._

_"I'm fine," Peeta murmured with a weak smile. "Thanks for the flowers."_

_"I need to talk to you about something," she told him, putting her hand over his._

_"What is it?"_

_"Look, you're a great guy," she started, hesitantly. "And it was nice dating you for three years. But…" she trailed off._

_Peeta realized where she was going. "You're breaking up with me?" he asked her, disbelieving._

_"I'm sorry Peeta, I-"_

_"Why?"_

_"I don't know, Peeta. I think it's time we both move on…"_

_"Cut the crap, Glimmer." He felt himself grow angrier. "Tell me why you're breaking up with me."_

_She threw her hands up in exasperation. "God, do you really want to know? Fine. I don't know how it works in your family, but where I come from, people don't marry… cripples. It was fun dating you, but now I need to find someone suitable, someone I can spend my life with. And I'm sorry, but I can't spend the rest of my life with someone like you."_

_Peeta was shocked. She was breaking up with him because of his missing leg? After three years? "You're right, it was fun," he agreed, impassively. "Now get the fuck out of my life."_

_He never saw her again._

PRESENT

Peeta shuddered from the memory and tried not to think about it for the rest of the day.

The entire day went by and he only saw Katniss once, when he handed out papers during his TA period for Dr. Trinket. When he got to her desk, he didn't even look up.

When he got home after class, he was relieved to find the apartment empty. He quickly ate some leftovers from the fridge and then retired to his room for the night.

After removing his prosthetic leg and changing into more comfortable clothes, he laid down on his bed and stared outside through his window, wishing that by some miracle he could change the past.

* * *

KATNISS

_Katniss ran into the art studio, twenty minutes late. She cursed as she fumbled with the doorknob, which kept slipping from her grip. When she finally wrenched it open, she found the classroom empty._

_Puzzled, she checked the time on her phone and confirmed that it was indeed time for class. So where was everyone?_

_Suddenly the door at the front of the room next to Dr. Trinket's office opened, and in walked Peeta._

_"Where's Dr. Trinket? Where is everyone else? We have class today, right?" she blurted out._

_He calmly strode over to the podium where Dr. Trinket normally stood and positioned himself in front of it, straightening the pile of papers in front of him._

_"Dr. Trinket is out today," he announced loudly, as if speaking to the whole class. "Today, I will take her place. We will be starting a new unit on painting the human form."_

_Katniss looked all around again. "But there's no one else here but me!"_

_Peeta smiled wickedly and replied, "Then it'll be like a private lesson, won't it?" Suddenly he stepped away from the podium and started walking toward her desk._

_Seconds later, he was sitting next to her, holding a brush and some paint. "The human body is such an elegant figure, don't you think?" he asked, his blue orbs staring at her. She nodded meekly. "Which explains why there's so much art that focuses on it," he continued, starting to set up the paints._

_He then went on to describe various aspects of the human body including its proportions and the physical limitations of body parts, while slowly and methodically squeezing out paint from the little tubes and using small paint brushes to blend different shades together, glancing up at her every few seconds._

_When he finished preparing the paints on the palette, he turned to face her completely. "Would you like to try it yourself, or would you like me to show you first?"_

_"Um… I think you should go first," she replied. "But there's no paper here…"_

_Peeta's smile grew even wider and he shifted his chair so that it was touching hers. "Didn't I say we would be painting the human body today?" He reached up and brushed her hair away so that it flowed down her back. He then gently held her right forearm and tugged it toward him so that it rested in his lap. Then the paintbrush was on her skin, the cold, wet paint making her shiver._

_"Hold still, love," he whispered, dragging the brush over her skin. In spite of the cold paint, she felt herself grow warmer with each stroke of the paintbrush._

_Soon both of her arms were covered with paint, all the way up to the sleeves of her short-sleeve blouse. The design on her right arm resembled a starry night sky – a deep blue background specked with intricate stars and a glowing moon. The design on her right arm was a sea of clouds in front of a blue sky, illuminated by a blazing orange sun._

_Katniss stared at the designs in bewilderment. "Peeta, you're amazing. These are incredible."_

_His eyes lit up upon hearing her praise. "This is nothing compared to what I had planned for the transition between the two designs," he said softly._

_Katniss swallowed when she realized what he was implying._

_"That is, if you'll allow it," he continued, gazing at her intensely. His blue eyes entranced her._

_"I'll allow it," she whispered. Trembling, she started to unbutton the top button of her blouse. However, the paint on her hands was still wet so she stopped before getting any paint on her shirt. "Um, could you…" she started, blushing._

_Without missing a beat, Peeta reached over and gently unbuttoned the rest of her blouse and pushed it over her shoulders, carefully guiding her arms through the sleeves so that neither of the designs were ruined. Underneath, she wore a simple cotton white bra._

_Peeta stared at her unabashedly. "Beautiful," he breathed. Then he put an arm around her waist and pulled her sideways into his lap, her legs hanging over the left side of his chair. Then he gathered all of her hair and pushed it over to her other shoulder so that the side of her neck and shoulder were bared to him._

_Instinctively, Katniss closed her eyes and tilted her head to the right to give him more access. She waited for a few seconds, but felt nothing. Suddenly, she felt something soft and warm press against the bare skin of her shoulder. Her eyes immediately opened and she saw that he had pressed his mouth, not his brush, to her skin. She turned her head toward him and found herself staring at his lips, marveling at how soft they felt on her shoulder. She felt herself uncontrollably tilting her head up toward his. He tilted toward her and then their lips finally met-_

Katniss was jolted awake by her blaring alarm clock. Disappointment washed over her as she realized that it was all a dream, then embarrassment as she remembered what she and Peeta were doing in that dream.

_Screw priorities_, she thought. _I'm a goner._

She found Peeta in the kitchen that morning, making breakfast as usual. His back was turned as he furiously mixed something in a steel bowl on the counter and he didn't notice Katniss quietly walk in. She made a special effort to keep quiet, tiptoeing behind him. Then she quickly reached up and covered his face with her hands; however, in order to do so she had to press her entire body up against his back. She felt him stiffen immediately.

"Guess who?" she asked him playfully.

He gently but forcefully removed her hands from his face. "Stop."

Determined to cheer him up, she continued to tease him. "Wrong guess!"

"I'm not in the mood right now, Katniss." He turned around and gave her a serious look.

Katniss leaned her body against the counter next to him and let out a long sigh. "Peeta, I'm sorry."

He clenched his jaw and continued mixing.

"I made a mistake, and-"

"Why are you sorry?" he asked her, suddenly turned towards her. "I should be sorry. I'm sorry I came on to you. I'm sorry that you have to live with someone so…." He stopped mixing for a second, thinking of the right word. "Defective," he spat.

"Defective?" Katniss repeated. "Peeta, you're far from defective. You're smart and funny and artistic and kind!"

His eyes softened for a moment. Then they hardened again and he turned back to his mixing bowl. "You don't have to say those things to make me feel better. What you said the other day was right – we have our own priorities and we should keep them that way."

"What I'm saying is the truth, Peeta. And that's what I wanted to apologize for… I shouldn't have come on to you that way and then pushed you away. I'm sorry, Peeta. I really am."

The disappointment in Peeta's face was obvious even as he gave her a weak smile. "No, Katniss, it's my fault I was too forward with you. I don't know what I was thinking."

"So, can we still be friends?" she asked him hesitantly, holding out her hand. _Or more than friends? _she added, silently.

He shook it immediately, still smiling though it never really reached his eyes. "Of course. Friends."

Wednesday and Thursday went by quickly, as they both had to attend work and classes until evening. During the evenings, they went back to their normal routine of eating dinner together. Peeta went back to being his usual cheerful self; however, Katniss still felt like their conversations were a little awkward and forced.

On Friday morning, Katniss was in the middle of eating breakfast with Peeta when her phone vibrated.

She checked it and saw that there was a text from Johanna.

**[7:46 am] Jo: just letting you know in advance that i'm not coming to class today**

**[7:46 am] Katniss: What? Why?**

**[7:47 am] Jo: I'm sick**

**[7:48 am] Katniss: Sick with what? You were fine yesterday!**

**[7:50 am] Katniss: What are we going to do about our project?**

**[7:53 am] Katniss: JO REPLY RIGHT NOW OR I'LL TELL GALE ALL YOUR SECRETS**

After waiting five more minutes with no reply, Katniss decided to call her.

"Hey, brainless." Katniss heard some rustling noises in the background that sounded like blankets.

"You don't sound sick. But you sound like you're in bed, so I'll put my doubts aside." Then she heard the distinct noise of a wet _smooch_ and the sound of Jo giggling. Katniss sighed, knowingly. "Gale, put the girl down for a minute so I can talk some sense into her."

She heard some more rustling noises and then heard Gale's voice. "Sorry, Catnip. No can do. Besides, can't you just ask Blondie over there if he'll give you an extension?"

"How do _you_ know about Pe-" she started, then looked over at Peeta guiltily. However, he was still absorbed in eating his breakfast and scribbling something in a notebook that he didn't notice what she said. "How do you know about Blondie?" she whispered into the phone.

"Jo told me. Anyway, I gotta go give her a soothing sponge bath so that she can get better soon and help you with the project. See, Catnip, I'm only helping you."

Katniss rolled her eyes. "Tell Jo that if she doesn't come to class today, I'll make her present our project to the class alone next week. I'm serious!"

Gale laughed. "Okay, Catnip. Whatever you say. See ya."

"Bye, Gale."

She hung up the phone, then went back to eating her breakfast.

"What was that all about?" Peeta asked her, his eyebrows arched. "And who is 'blondie'?"

Katniss laughed nervously. "Oh, that was Jo and Gale. Jo's my partner for the art project… and you already know Gale. They're together now, by the way. Which is really annoying, because they're always ditching me all the time…" she rambled.

The corners of Peeta's mouth lifted slightly. "I know how you feel. I mean, Finnick and Annie – prime example."

"So true. Yeah, well, Johanna's not coming to class today and we were supposed to work on our project… And Gale's solution was to ask you for an extension," she said. "Not that I want an extension! I wasn't asking for one, he just suggested it."

"So, I'm blondie?" he mused. "Not a bad nickname. I'll allow it."

Suddenly Katniss had a flashback to her dream from the night before.

_Katniss stared at the designs in bewilderment. "Peeta, you're amazing. These are incredible."_

_His eyes lit up upon hearing her praise. "This is nothing compared to what I had planned for the transition between the two designs," he said softly._

_Katniss swallowed when she realized what he was implying._

_"That is, if you'll allow it," he continued, gazing at her intensely. His blue eyes entranced her._

_"I'll allow it," she whispered._

She blushed and shook herself out of her thoughts.

"If you want, I could step in and help you with your project," Peeta suggested. "Just for today, since Johanna's gone."

"No, no, please don't. I'm sure Dr. Trinket has other things for you to do," she replied, realizing too late how harsh that sounded.

"I guess," he muttered. "Well, works starts at 8:30 so I'd better go. See you later, Katniss."

* * *

PEETA

Work at the bakery that day was hectic, as it was a Friday, which meant that there were a lot of customers coming in and out of the bakery. Once Peeta's shift in the kitchen ended at 12, he had half an hour to eat lunch and then he immediately had to go to his constructive management class at 1:30.

Peeta didn't enjoy having such a busy schedule – in fact, what he felt was far from enjoyment. But he had to make ends meet, especially since he was paying $800 a month for the apartment. That's why he had been so desperate to find a roommate, even if they only paid $200 per month as he offered. Not to mention tuition costs, which had steadily risen over the past four years that he had been at Panem University. The truth was that he was studying architecture because it was a practical form of art, which was his life passion aside from cooking. And more importantly, he had always dreamed of opening his own bakery someday, and like his father he was the kind of man who liked to build things himself, make them his own.

So it was no surprise that when he reached Dr. Trinket's classroom at 3:50 he was dead tired. He headed straight for Dr. Trinket's desk where he normally worked, sat down on the chair, and dropped his backpack on the floor behind him. Then he looked out at the classroom and noticed that there was only one student there beside himself, and that was Katniss, sitting in her usual seat in the front row.

She was staring straight at him, her face completely pale, her eyes wide, and her mouth slightly open. She looked around the classroom with a bewildered expression on her face.

Confused, Peeta gave her a little wave. "Hey, Katniss. Is everything alright?"

Her face turned pink and she nodded, smiling slightly.

_I wonder what's up with her_, he thought.

He started working on some homework from constructive management class, but he stole glances at Katniss every few seconds. She had her phone out now, and was furiously typing something into it.

At 3:55, the first few students started streaming into the classroom. At that point, Katniss turned her head to look at them, then let out a loud sigh of relief. Her eyes met Peeta's and she gave him a crooked grin, which he cheerfully returned.

Dr. Trinket arrived a couple of minutes later and announced that they would continue working on their color wheel projects, as scheduled, and that if they had any questions she would be in her office, which was connected to the classroom by a door behind her desk.

As everyone started working on their projects, Katniss made her way to the front of the room. Peeta pretended to be working on his homework, but in reality he was watching her out of the corner of his eye.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. "I'm going to go ask Dr. Trinket for an extension. Wish me luck!" he heard Katniss whisper into his ear. He stifled a groan at the sensation of her lips barely brushing his ear as she drew back.

Two minutes later, she came out of Dr. Trinket's office. "Hey, um, Peeta?"

He looked up from his work. "Yeah?"

"She wouldn't give me an extension. It was worth a shot," she chuckled. "_Always be punctual!_" she sang, imitating Dr. Trinket. "Anyway, she wants you to work with me on the project, just for today. She told me she didn't have anything else for you to do… But if you have work, it's totally fine, I can work on my own…" she trailed off, eyeing his homework.

"It would be my pleasure," he replied, grinning. "You go grab what you have so far, and I'll get some supplies."

* * *

KATNISS

When Katniss saw Peeta first walk into the classroom, she nearly fainted. Her palms began to sweat as she looked around for the third time to see if the classroom was still empty aside from Peeta and herself. Then she turned back around and stared at Peeta, her mouth slightly open, wondering if her inappropriate dream was really about to come true. When other students started to file into the classroom a few minutes later, she was so relieved that she gave Peeta a grin.

She failed to get an extension from Dr. Trinket for the project (she would have to rant to Jo about that later), but was told to "ask the TA for help". Peeta looked genuinely excited when she asked him to help her, and they started immediately.

After showing him how to make the desired colors using the method Katniss devised last class, Peeta was quick to start working on them. In the meantime, Katniss began working on the drafts of the design for the color wheel. The original plan was to go with a historical theme – the color wheel would be made up of 12 different silhouettes, each with one primary, secondary, or tertiary color. They would be silhouettes of important symbols from each of the 12 historic districts, districts which existed until President Snow was assassinated and his oppressive reign ended many decades before.

The only problem was, as Katniss was realizing, that she couldn't draw to save her life. Currently, she was trying to draw the outline of a mining helmet for District 12, but it ended up looking more like a mushroom than anything. She laughed hopelessly.

Peeta heard her laughing and leaned over to look at the design himself. "What are you laughing at?"

"My design. It's supposed to be a mining helmet, but it looks more like a mushroom."

"I was going to ask if your theme was garden vegetables or something," he admitted, chuckling. "Here, let me try fixing it." He grabbed the paper and started erasing lines here and there, then adding others in himself.

A few minutes later, he handed it back to her. "It's not perfect, but I made sure it didn't look like a mushroom, if anything."

It was exactly what she had pictured in her mind when she set out to draw it in the first place. Everything was perfect, down to the logo on the front that said 'District 12'.

"Peeta, this is perfect," she said in amazement. "Do you think you could draw the rest of the symbols as well? I can finish mixing the paints."

"I'd love to," he responded. "What symbols were you thinking of?"

They spent the rest of class that way – Peeta drawing symbols as described by Katniss, and Katniss mixing and storing the paints in spare bottles. They finished a few minutes before class ended and had just enough time to clean up.

Waiting for Dr. Trinket to dismiss the class, they sat at Katniss' desk and talked for a few minutes.

"You know, you're a much better partner than Johanna," Katniss confessed.

"I am?"

"Yeah. First of all, you don't call me brainless." He laughed. "And secondly, you don't complain."

"Well, technically this _is_ part of my TA job," he pointed out. "But you're welcome anyway."

"Maybe I should ask Dr. Trinket to make you my official partner instead of Johanna," Katniss joked. "As long as you don't start playing hookie with some girl you just met two days ago."

Peeta chuckled. "That would never happen, trust me. But I'd like that. Being partners with you, I mean." His blue eyes bore into hers.

She smiled genuinely. "I'd like that, too."

* * *

**Question of the day: Would you rather be given a sponge bath by Gale, or be painted on by Peeta? :D**


	7. That's it?

**Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you: Chapter 7: Pure fluff. Actually, though. You're welcome ;) Please let me know what you think!**

**As always, thanks to everlarkcheesebuns for being my beta!**

* * *

PEETA

_"Come on, Peet. It's 11:00! Let's go home already, we can finish the cupcakes tomorrow morning,"_

_"Unlike some people, I like to get my work done on time, Rye," Peeta replied while carefully icing a cupcake. "Besides, we're almost done."_

_"Alright, goody two-shoes. Here, let me help."_

_Together they finished icing all the cupcakes in 15 minutes. After storing them in the refrigerator for the night, they cleaned up and locked the bakery._

_As they were walking home, a thought occurred to Peeta._

_"Hey Rye, what do you plan on doing once you graduate? You know, mother expects you to take over the bakery, right?"_

_Rye let out a long sigh. "I know, Peet. But I'm sick of not being able to live my own life. I mean, it's bad enough having to come back here and work at the bakery every summer while the rest of my friends are out doing internships and making their own money."_

_"Well, we are technically getting paid…" Peeta started._

_Rye scoffed. "What, below minimum wage? Besides, I'm an engineering major! I need experience in _engineering_," he emphasized._

_Peeta said nothing, knowing that Rye was right._

_"What about you, little bro? You're not planning on working here at the bakery forever, are you?"_

_"Actually, I want to start my own bakery. Design it myself, you know? It'll put that architecture degree to use."_

_"I can totally see you doing that, Peet. And it'll be a fantastic bakery. I know it," Rye said, giving Peeta a grin. "I'm really proud of you, little bro. And I can't wait to see you graduate in two years – you really deserve it."_

_"Thanks, Rye," Peeta replied, returning his grin. "And I'm proud of y-_

_Suddenly, they both heard the sound of a car swerving, getting louder and louder by the second. It was pitch dark in the neighborhood they were walking in, and neither Peeta nor Rye could see more than a few feet ahead of them._

_In a split second, there was a bright flash of light and the sight Peeta saw would scar him for life. A huge truck was hurdling toward Rye and himself, who was standing there, motionless._

_"RYE!" Peeta screamed, grabbing Rye's arm and pulling him toward the sidewalk. Suddenly there was a loud _THUMP_ and he felt an excruciating pain in his right leg. Moments before he fell unconscious, he caught a glimpse of Rye – or, rather, what was left of him._

_Loud screaming began to fill the air, and Peeta didn't notice that he was the one screaming until his throat became sore and the screams began to waver when someone grabbed his shoulders and shook them –_

He opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was a pair of steely silver eyes, set against the clearest olive skin he had ever seen. _Katniss._

She looked at him with wide, concerned eyes, her face just a few inches away from his own as she peered at his face, her hands clutching his shoulders. He felt his face grow hot when he noticed that she was basically straddling his legs, her weight resting on her knees, which were on either side of his thighs on the bed.

"Peeta, what happened?" she asked him, a worried look on her face. "I woke up and went to the kitchen and you –" She paused for a second, looking away. "You _weren't_ _there_… And then I heard you screaming so I ran in here and tried to wake you. Is everything okay?"

"I'm fine, I just had a bad dream," Peeta replied, running his hands through his messy hair. "Katniss… you were worried about me?"

"No," she said with a scowl, lifting herself off of Peeta to sit next to him in his bed. He feigned a look of sorrow and her scowl faded slightly, replaced with concern. "Okay… maybe. But… do these… these dreams happen often? Do you want to talk about it?"

"I wouldn't want to burden you, Katniss. It's really not that bad." He stared at his hands.

"Peeta, you were literally screaming and thrashing your arms and legs when I found you. If that's not bad, I don't know what is."

He sighed. "Okay. Well. About a year ago, my brother Rye was killed by a drunk driver."

Peeta dared to look up at Katniss, and the look she gave him was one of sadness and understanding, but there was no trace of pity. She covered his hand with her own and nodded silently, waiting for him to continue.

"The thing is, my family isn't exactly what I would call… normal. I mean, my dad is normal – actually, he's amazing and supportive and kind, but my mother… she's another story. Let's just say that she has a bit of an anger problem." He laughed humorlessly. "So naturally, Rye and I were really close. In fact, he was my best friend. He was always there for me, and I wish I had acknowledged that more when he was – when he was still –" He broke off, unable to finish his sentence. Katniss gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

"Anyway, I've had nightmares about the moment it happened, ever since. It's happening less now, but when it happens, it's bad."

"Peeta, I'm so sorry this happened to you… and to Rye. He sounds like a wonderful person, and an even more wonderful brother. And thanks for being willing to share this with me. It couldn't have been easy."

"I don't think I could have shared it with anyone else, Katniss," he told her honestly. "But there's one more thing I have to tell you about."

"What is it?"

"The accident… it changed me," he murmured.

"What do you mean? Psychologically?"

"No, um… more like, physically." She gave him a puzzled look. "I don't know if I should show you… I mean it's not a pretty sight. I don't know if you want to see that," he continued.

"Peeta, it's fine. My mother worked in the medical field, so I'm used to that sort of stuff. If you're comfortable, then go ahead and show me," she replied. "Please," she added, when he gave her a skeptical look.

"Alright." A flush of embarrassment staining his face, he reached forward and pulled the bottom edge of his right pajama pant leg up, revealing the shiny metal of his prosthetic.

Katniss looked at the prosthetic for a few seconds, then looked back at Peeta, a look of surprise on her face. "That's it?"

Peeta was taken by surprise at her response. "Wait, what? What do you mean?"

Katniss burst out into laughter. "Peeta, you had me dead scared for a second. I was expecting some sort of terminal illness or something… but all you have is a prosthetic leg!"

"All… I have… is a prosthetic leg?" he repeated in wonderment. "So you're not disgusted?"

"Nope," she replied with a grin.

"Revolted?"

"Nope."

"Offended, maybe?"

She laughed again. "Not even the slightest bit, Peeta. What sort of person do you think I am?"

He remembered Glimmer, and then pushed the thought away. "Just checking," he replied, finding her grin contagious.

"I am a bit curious, though," she confessed. "So you can't feel anything through the prosthetic?"

"Not really. But I can feel pressure when I put my weight on it."

"So you can't feel this at all?" She placed her hand on the thick metal rod of the prosthetic – where his calf would have been. She ran her hand up and down the metal, looking at him to gauge his reaction.

"No, I can't. But I wish I could," he admitted wistfully, watching her hand trail back and forth.

Katniss' face turned pink and she drew her hand back quickly. They looked away from each other for a few seconds, awkwardly. Katniss was the first to break the silence.

"So, your leg – is it completely healed now?" she asked him, curiously.

"Yeah, pretty much. I actually just finished physical therapy a few weeks ago. It hurts sometimes at the end of the day, or if I go to sleep with it on."

"Why did you wear it to sleep last night, then?"

"Well, er – I didn't want to freak you out if you had to come into my room for anything. Since you didn't know about it yet, that is."

"That's ridiculous, Peeta! I understand why you didn't tell me about it earlier, but you shouldn't put yourself in pain just to avoid 'freaking me out'," she chided. "Is it hurting now?"

"A bit, yeah," he admitted.

"Well then, let's get this thing off for a few minutes. At least until you have to go to work, which isn't for another hour at least." She positioned herself so that she was kneeling on the bed next to his prosthetic, and then pushed his pant leg up even further so that she could see where the artificial leg started.

"Katniss, I can do it myself, honestly-" he began, blushing at her forwardness, but she waved him away.

"I'm an engineer. I can figure this out." After a few seconds of examining the prosthetic, she clicked the pin at the bottom and pulled it off of his leg. "See?" She smiled, holding it up in her hand.

Then before he could stop her, she also removed the liner that covered his stump. He scrambled to cover himself with the blanket, but she didn't let him.

"Peeta, I told you. There's no need to be ashamed. Now make yourself comfortable while I bring you something to eat," she said with a wink, jumping off the bed and making her way to the kitchen.

When she was gone, Peeta sucked in a sharp breath. _Holy shit,_ he thought. _She doesn't mind. She doesn't mind that I have a missing leg. I think I'm dreaming. Holy shit._

She came back a few minutes later holding a tray with a tall glass of orange juice, a bagel, some cream cheese in a small cup, and a butter knife.

_Scratch that – Now I KNOW I'm dreaming._

After that incident, Peeta became more comfortable wearing shorts around the house. He even began to remove his prosthetic more often – for example, when he watched TV or did homework at the kitchen counter.

One night when he and Katniss were watching a movie on the living room couch, he noticed her staring at his stump curiously. When he caught her gaze, she smiled embarrassedly.

"Sorry. I just find it so interesting how the skin was able to grow right over the broken bone," she explained nervously.

He chuckled. "It's okay, I wondered about that too, at first. Human skin is truly amazing," he marveled.

"And," she continued, suddenly fidgeting with her hands. "I was wondering what it… you know,_ felt_ like."

His eyes widened. "What my leg feels like?"

"Yeah."

"It just feels like a normal leg, I think. Except half of it's missing, obviously." He laughed nervously. "But, um, you can see for yourself, if you like." He immediately closed his eyes and internally cursed himself. _Idiot. She's not going to want to feel your gross stump._

Suddenly he felt a warm hand on his leg. He opened his eyes and saw Katniss caressing the end of his stump, and felt himself start to get hard. _Shit, this is embarrassing._ He tried to distract himself from the much-too-pleasant sensation he was feeling as a result of Katniss' exploration of his amputated leg, without any success.

Then she did the unthinkable – she leaned down and pressed a quick kiss against the tip of his leg.

"Fuck, I'm a goner." His face turned pale when he realized he said it aloud.

Katniss drew back and studied him, her expression unreadable as she combed her fingers through his hair. He bit his lip to keep from moaning. Her gaze lingered on his mouth for a few seconds and he watched her tongue run over her bowed lips. Then her gaze flitted back to his eyes for a split-second before she lunged forward into his lap and pressed her mouth against his.

He stiffened in surprise, then groaned and buried one hand in her hair, the other hand splayed against her back, pulling her body even closer to his until she was straddling him for the second time. He felt her tongue glide against his mouth and he opened it immediately, allowing her to deepen the kiss.

* * *

KATNISS

Katniss didn't know what came over her that evening. Maybe it was the fact that she was sitting less than a foot away from him on the couch as they watched a movie. Not to mention that all he was wearing was a pair of athletic shorts and a white undershirt, and as she stole occasional glances at him throughout the movie she admired his muscular frame and well-defined muscles through the thin material of his shirt.

But there was also the fact that he was still a little shy about his leg, and she wanted to show him that it really, truly didn't make a difference to her. She found herself gazing at his amputated leg, wondering how it looked so smooth.

When he caught her staring, she timidly explained what she was thinking about, and he simply laughed and said something about how he had the same thoughts, initially.

Emboldened by his response, she continued, "And… I was wondering what it… you know, _felt_ like."

He looked surprised. "What my leg feels like?"

"Yeah." _That's not creepy at all, Katniss._

"It just feels like a normal leg, I think. Except half of it's missing, obviously," he replied, laughing uneasily. "But, um, you can see for yourself, if you like."

She reached out and placed her hand on his leg, feeling its smoothness. She looked up and saw that Peeta's eyes were averted, a look of sheer embarrassment on his face. Determined to alleviate Peeta's self-consciousness about his leg, she leaned over and planted a chaste kiss against his leg.

"Fuck, I'm a goner," she heard him growl. _I think that was the sexiest thing I've heard in my life_, she thought.

She drew back and let her eyes eagerly roam over his now-flushed face. A few locks of his short, wavy blonde locks fell over his forehead so she reached out and combed her hands through them, pushing his hair back so she could study his features: shockingly blue eyes, a smattering of freckles over his nose, chiseled cheekbones, and a strong jawline. She paused for a few seconds to stare at his lips – the lower of which was tucked beneath his teeth. They were full and perfectly shaped – in short, very kissable. She couldn't help but run her tongue over her own lips, wishing she could do the same to his. She then shifted her gaze back up and found that his pupils were suddenly dilated, his irises a deep, deep blue.

Her heart pounding like a drum, she climbed onto his lap and pressed her mouth against his before she could second-guess herself. She almost pulled back in embarrassment when he immediately froze; however, seconds later he responded by planting his hands on her hips and pulling her closer so that they were completely pressed up against each other.

When they both drew back for air, Peeta removed his left hand from her waist and reached up to gather her hair and push it to one side. Then he began to plant open-mouthed kisses all over her neck, pulling the neck of her shirt to the side to gain access to her shoulder. She let out a whimper and ran her hands through his hair in frustration. He rolled over in response, flipping them so that he was hovering above her, his weight against his arms.

He then gave her one last nip below her ear and then slanted his mouth across hers once again. As they continued to kiss, her hands dipped beneath the hem of his shirt and began to roam over his torso, feeling his muscles clench as her hands glided across them. After a few moments, she impatiently pushed his shirt up so that it was bunched at his chest. Without missing a beat, he pulled away to lift his shirt over his head and toss it into a far corner. He brought his mouth down to hers once again and she resumed her exploration, slowly sliding her hands up his back, over his shoulders, and down his chest and stomach. When she started raking her fingers through the fine hairs on his stomach just above the waistband of his shorts, he let out a deep moan. Then he gently removed her hand, bringing it up to press it against his warm lips.

"Katniss," he breathed, gazing at her through half-lidded eyes. "If you keep doing that, I can't be held accountable for what I might do to you." He slipped a hand underneath the hem of her shirt and hooked his thumb just under the waistband of her cotton shorts, rubbing her skin in slow circles.

She felt heat pool in her stomach. "What might you do to me?" she whispered breathlessly, squirming. He continued to tease her, and she involuntarily bucked her hips up into his and gasped when she felt the hard bulge in his shorts.

He grabbed her hips to hold them still and stared at her intensely. "It would take all night for me to list all the things I want to do to you." His breath tickled her lips as he spoke. Then he pushed himself away from her slightly and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "But I want to do this right, and now's not the time," he murmured softly.

Katniss tried not to look disappointed, knowing that he was right. She disentangled herself from him, and then started to get up from the sofa to head off to bed.

"Wait," Peeta called out. "Um, first I have to take care of… something," he stammered, indiscreetly covering himself with a pillow. "But after, do you want to want to sleep with me?"

Katniss' eyebrows raised.

"Wait – no, I mean… will you sleep in my bed tonight?"

Katniss smiled wordlessly and, without answering, headed off to her room to change and brush her teeth. Ten minutes later, she walked into Peeta's bedroom and found him laying on his bed with his eyes closed, having already changed into his pajama bottoms. She quietly slipped onto the bed without him noticing, resting her head on his bicep and wrapping an arm around his waist, tucking herself into his side.

"I was afraid I freaked you out and you weren't going to come," he whispered, smiling down at her. "So you'll stay?"

She tucked her face into his chest and pressed a kiss against his bare skin. "Always," she replied.

* * *

**Any scene ideas? Leave a comment in the reviews, or feel free to PM me.**


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